SSH into a Synology or QNAP NAS from your Mac

A NAS runs a trimmed-down system (DSM on Synology, QTS on QNAP, TrueNAS, Unraid) and offers SSH for the jobs its web interface does not cover: checking df -h, editing a Docker Compose file, restarting a package that hangs, reading a log. From a Mac the routine is short: a shell, a file transfer now and then, and the admin page when you are away from home. SSHive keeps one profile per NAS, with the SFTP file manager next to the terminal in the same tab. Drag files in from Finder to upload them, or open a text file in the built-in editor, change it on the NAS and save with ⌘S.

In DSM, open Control Panel > Terminal & SNMP > Terminal and tick Enable SSH service. Synology suggests moving it off the default port 22; whatever you pick goes in the profile. Only accounts in the administrators group can log in over SSH, and sudo -i gives you root when a task needs it. SFTP is a separate service in DSM, under Control Panel > File Services > FTP, in the SFTP section: tick Enable SFTP service if you want the file manager as well as the terminal. Then create the profile in SSHive with the NAS address, the port and that administrator account, and move to a key once the password login works.

DSM listens on 5000 (HTTP) and 5001 (HTTPS). Rather than forwarding those ports on your router, add a local tunnel to the NAS profile: local port 5001, remote host localhost, remote port 5001. Connect, then open https://localhost:5001; the browser may warn that the certificate was not issued for localhost, which is expected. The same approach works for QTS on QNAP (8080 by default) and for TrueNAS or Unraid on 80 or 443. From outside your home, the SSH port itself still has to be reachable: through a VPN such as Tailscale or WireGuard, or a forwarded port that only accepts keys.